Hope Smith
Founder of Born to Travel
A little bit about Hope…
Born to Travel was started in 1991 by award-winning luxury travel advisor Hope Smith. After 22 years in the Chicago police force, she transformed her investigation background into one of global discovery and began sharing her treasured destinations with her loyal travelers.
Hope’s love of travel was born while backpacking through Europe in 1969 and only grew from there. In 1980, she hiked to Mt Everest base camp which wet her appetite for more complex travels. Her wanderlust took her to far-flung destinations such as Bhutan, Rwanda and China long before international travel became more easily accessible. Hope’s colleagues reveled in her travel stories and came to her for advice and counsel. Born to Travel became the next step on her life’s journey.
138 countries later, Hope has a depth of destination knowledge unrivaled in the luxury travel space. She is as comfortable tasting local food in a remote village as she is noshing on the tasting menu of a Michelin-starred restaurant – and she can plan the trip you are looking for because of her incredible expertise. Hope has built relationships across the world, enhancing her ability to not only make your trip happen seamlessly, but to make it extraordinary. Her experience and connections are unmatched.
Hope’s passion for global travel and deep knowledge translate into incredible journeys and life-long memories for her guests. She will make your vacation the most customized, memorable experience possible!